Media and Entertainment: May 2011 Archives

A couple has decided to name their baby "Like," taking inspiration from the popular social networking site, Facebook.

An Israeli couple who prides themselves on giving their kids "unique, creative and totally new" names decided to use the "Like" button as the inspiration for their daughter's name, feeling it gave her an international flair.

It is reported however, that the couple did not necessarily name the child after the button we press on Facebook to express interest or approval for a posting - the mother says they chose the name because it is "short and sweet" and, in any event, the other two kids were named Dvash (Hebrew for "honey") and Pie (as in apple pie).

They have assured us that Facebook did not pay them to use the name, and the baby's father admits that he only has about 120 friends on the networking site.

It could be weirder - as PC World points out, an Egyptian father decided to go to the extreme and name his child "Facebook."

The good thing here is that little Like already has hundreds of comments on her own Facebook page.

CIO has decided that there are ten tech-inspired names that are better than Like. Topping the list at number one is Perl, followed by Mac, Ruby and Linus, with PC rounding out the list at number ten (which has to be better than JR).

We may be on to a trend but I have to say that Pascal is not a bad name either... it certainly beats calling your daughter "Twitter."

Disney has gone ahead and capitalized on the public's fascination with 'SEAL Team 6' - the elusive commando group that took down Osama Bin Laden - by attempting to trademark the name two days after the master terrorist's death.

The mark application covers "clothing, footwear, headwear, toys, games and 'entertainment and education services,' among other things," reports Fishbowl NY.

This has led to snorts of contempt across the blogosphere, with The Gawker pointing out that Disney has also trademarked the name "Christmas tree ornaments."

The interest is the Navy SEALs has even propelled a rise in sales of romance novels featuring the tough commandos in, er, action.

The Navy SEALs are now being looked at as celebrities and sex symbols despite their low profile status and the deadly work they are trained to carry out.

Disney applied for the mark on May 3, just days after the raid. There is now a rumor going around that Disney may want to create a cartoon featuring animated seals.

I would imagine that the SEALs will become the new GI Joe, not least because of the massive public interest in the men who carried out such a daring raid.

The trademark seems to have been applied for before - previous owner NovaLogic Inc. abandoned two associated trademarks in 2006 that were meant for gaming. I am sure Disney will make short work of these.

There is no doubt that the name SEAL now has valuable equity and will be commercially exploited.

We here at SND do not use this blog to make political statements, but I have watched the Trump brand over the years with some interest.

There can be no doubt that his recent foray into politics will certainly have an effect on our perceptions of the Trump name. But it is, of course, the personality of the man himself that drives the brand.

The 60 Second Marketer asks a difficult question: "Is Donald Trump a super-successful businessman who has created a powerful brand around his name? Or is he an egomaniacal boor who has permanently damaged a brand that took decades to create?"

Hmmm.

I am not going to say yay or nay. I am simply going to point out that this is a brand with massive equity that seems to even translate from real estate to hand sanitizer (at least as far as Vanity Fair is concerned).

The actual value of the brand seems unclear - Forbes values it at around $200 million, while The Donald has it as $3-6 billion.

It's hard to say how his presidential aspirations have affected the Trump brand name. His real estate seems to be selling at its usual prices, but his clothing seems to be much more in demand.

Still, experts say that if he does run for president, the Trump business brand could suffer.

Douglas Hanks in The Columbus Dispatch suggests that the people who buy Trump products usually do not vote conservatively. On the other hand, he quotes one Trump executive as saying ""What's his commodity? It's not his real-estate expertise. It's not his capital. It's his name... exposure is exposure."

True, but the fact that he has licensed his name to some real estate debacles is really not the kind of exposure he needs.

To me, this kind of failure will, er, trump, anything good that comes from his political showmanship.

Kim Kardashian has a new perfume named "Kim Kardashian Gold," which is fitting, some say, because everything she touches turns to gold.

Her first perfume, launched last year, was simply called Kim Kardashian.

She launched her new offering at the Macy's Fashion show in Las Vegas last night, explaining that "Gold is a luxury that stands the test of time, a universal symbol of sophistication and glamour... like a stunning piece of precious jewelry, Gold lends everyday style a surge of seductive sparkle and timeless beauty."

The perfume is sold exclusively at Macy's, and positioned as "a little sexier, a little blingier, just more gold."

The Kardashians are really a "brading machine" according to the LA Times, recently noting that "there are Kardashian boutiques, fragrances, jewelry, apparel, bikinis, self-tanner, skin-care products, candles - even bottled water, if you're willing to shell out $10 for it."

Kardashian Inc. raked in over $65 million last year and we can expect more products bearing the Kardashian name soon. How about a "glam pack" of Silly Bands? Or Kardashian Khaos, a retail store in the Las Vegas Mirage Hotel?

Khloe and her Laker husband recently released a unisex fragrance called "Unbreakable" as well. In addition, the Kardashian Kollection, a "shop within a shop" concept will be hitting Sears stores soon.

Now the question is, has the Kardashian name become overexposed?

Not so long as they retain their star power and don't become fodder for too much negative gossip.

This seems to me like good old fashioned brand management (Kim's mother, Kris Jenner, is in charge of this empire). The name is being aligned with fashion and luxury and the sisters are the natural faces for it.

But can we really kontinue seeing brand's starting with "k?" It might drive us all krazy. Or not.